In addition to standard locally hosted avatar images, Kentico CMS also supports Gravatars (globally recognized avatars) for users. Gravatar is an avatar hosting service (http://gravatar.com/) that allows users to register their e‑mail address and upload an associated image. This image is then automatically provided as an avatar on all websites with Gravatar support where the user can be identified through the given e‑mail address. With Kentico CMS sites, this address is taken from the settings of registered users. In the case of public (unauthenticated) visitors, the system checks the optional e‑mail value that can be entered when leaving comments or posting in forums.

 

Gravatars are not enabled by default. If you wish to use them on your site, it is necessary to adjust the avatar settings in Site Manager -> Settings -> Community -> Avatars.

 

 

The Avatar type setting determines what kind of user avatars will be allowed on the website. The following options may be selected:

 

•Avatar - only the standard avatars stored locally in the website's database or file system will be available and Gravatars will not be supported. Users will be able to either upload their own image or choose a predefined one.

•Gravatar - with this option, Gravatars will be used for all users and visitors. When displaying avatars, the system will automatically check the e‑mail addresses of users and if a matching Gravatar is found, it will be loaded and displayed. Users who do not have a Gravatar registered and public visitors without a specified e‑mail address will have a default image assigned. Please note that switching to this option will change the avatars of users who have uploaded a custom image locally for the website. Enabling Gravatars has no effect on group avatars.

•User can choose - selecting this value allows both possible avatar options. Registered users will be able to choose whether they want to use a Gravatar or a local avatar. Gravatar support will be enabled for public users.

 

When using Gravatars, users will only be able to view the avatar image in their profile, with no option of changing it locally. If the User can choose option is selected, it will be possible for users to switch between the two modes by selecting the appropriate radio button as shown below.

 

 

All Gravatar images are rated according to the maturity level of their content. You can set the maximum rating that should be allowed on your website by configuring the Gravatar rating setting. The following ratings are available:

 

•G - suitable for display on all websites with any audience type.

•PG - may contain rude gestures, provocatively dressed individuals, the lesser swear words, or mild violence.

•R - may contain such things as harsh profanity, intense violence, nudity, or hard drug use.

•X - may contain hardcore sexual imagery or extremely disturbing violence.

 

If a user's Gravatar does not meet the site's rating requirements, it is replaced by the default image.

 

 

The Gravatar default image setting determines what type of image should be displayed as the avatar of users who do not have a valid Gravatar registered for their e‑mail address. If the (none) option is selected, the local avatar image specified as default for users in Site Manager -> Administration -> Avatars is used. The remaining options provide various types of default Gravatar image sets. In most cases, a different image is generated based on the e‑mail address of the given user, so even users without a Gravatar account will have a unique avatar image assigned.